Who's your favorite political commentator?

[spooky3]

I'm going to include only men here, just because there are only 10 slots, but someone else may want to start a poll including women and/or other men.

[Kierkegaard]

1. Marcel Marceau

[spooky3]

2. LOL--so you're not a stoned slacker, then?

[Kierkegaard]

4. Not usually both at once, no.

[klook]

3. Daniel Schorr

He's intelligent, funny, a maverick, and has a long history of journalistic excellence. He learned the ropes under Edward R. Murrow, and famously read his own name on the air while reporting on Nixon's enemies list.

[1monster]

5. Eric Severeid..... but he's dead, I think.

I'm not sure I ever understood what he was saying (I was very young when he was a commentator for CBS), but the man was absolutely lyrical in his use of language...

[tridim]

6. DU

It's the best source for political commentary anywhere.

Jon Stewart is certainly the funniest guy who happens to talk about politics, but he's not a political commentator. He would agree with me.

[indigobusiness]

22. Jon Stewart uses satire and humor to make serious statements

political and otherwise.

His show is social commentary. Don't let the humor fool you.

[spooky3]

23. Anyone who is paid for his/her political comments (even if s/he makes

other comments too, or makes them humorously) is in my definition of political commentator. I suppose you could make it even broader to include bloggers who aren't paid for their commentary.

Anyway, by my definition, even when he's not serious, JS qualifies, as do Leno and Letterma, etc., and I definitely agree with you that JS (actually all three of them, but Stewart, and Olbermann, probably, to the greatest extent) are often quite serious in their statements, even when using humor as a means to the end.

[Was_Immer]

7. Mark Shields PBS

Hes very insightful.

[grasswire]

8. Ron Reagan

Smart, hip, thoughtful.

[Lefty48197]

9. Tim Skubick Michigan Public TV

.

[Robbie67]

10. Bill Moyers

I also agree about Ron Reagan

[newyawker99]

15. Hi Robbie67!!

Welcome to DU!! :toast:

[BillZBubb]

11. Kevin Phillips.

Jon Stewart gets honorable mention. Kevin Phillips is an old school Republican, but if Democrats would listen to him on tactics (not necessarily policy), the Democratic party would be an invincible majority party.

He was on NOW the other night, and as always was right on the money.

[peacetalksforall]

12. You don't have Joe Conason, Gene Lyons, David Corn, Kristen Van H,

Carville, Brock, Pallast, and dozens more.

[peacetalksforall]

13. Mailer, Vidal, Mondale, Chomsky, Krugman, Hiassen -

Authors and columnists can never be left out when there are so precious few vocal ones who hit you between the eyes.

[spooky3]

16. as noted in my OP, there is room only for 10, so check out

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x1096719

if you can, why not donate to DU so you can start a poll?

[baltodemvet]

14. Josh Marshall

[terrya]

17. Molly Ivins.

I adore her. A great liberal, wonderful writer, and funny as hell.

[Jackson4Gore]

18. Bill Maher

[jmowreader]

19. Molly Ivins and Bartcop

[indigobusiness]

20. ---Hunter S. Thompson---

The Bush family reeks of fraud and bad karma. But even worse than our wretched, gibbling president are the cowardly whores in Hollywood who are currently smearing film stars and music people like Johnny Depp by calling them unpatriotic Americans who righteously question the wisdom of invading a whole nation of Islam -- 1.8 billion worshipers -- which is a dangerously stupid idea. Disagreeing with Donald Rumsfeld about bombing anybody who gets in our way is not a crime in this country. It is a wise and honorable idea that George Washington and Benjamin Franklin risked their lives for. These thieves in the White House are so crazy with greed and power, and they are causing so much drastic damage to the world we live in, that they are the ones who should be put on trial for treason.
---Hunter S. Thompson---

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
America...just a nation of two hundred million used car salesmen with all the money we need to buy guns and no qualms about killing anybody else in the world who tries to make us uncomfortable.
Hunter S. Thompson

[siliconefreak]

21. Mark Shields

Sharp and witty.

[Richardson08]

24. Liz Marlantes

[Eric J in MN]

25. I like Sam Seder of "The Majority Report" radio show (nt)

nt